Police Scotland and Scottish Government meeting: October 2024

Attendees and apologies

• Angela Constance MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs
• Jo Farrell, Chief Constable, Police Scotland
• Jane Connors, Deputy Chief Constable, Police Scotland 
• Don McGillivray, Director, Safer Communities, Scottish Government
• Scott McNeil, Police Division, Scottish Government (note)

Items and actions

Policing budget

The Chief Constable highlighted the value of multi-year funding and the ability to borrow as well as hold reserves, to ensure Police Scotland are in a position to deliver on police reform and implement the three-year business plan.

The Cabinet Secretary agreed that we want to get to a long term position on budgets, but currently the Scottish Government cannot set a multi-year budget without knowing the UK budget position. The UK government have committed to a multi-year spending review next year which may be helpful in this regard. 

The Cabinet Secretary and Don McGillivray (DM) explained that, as Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) are classed as national bodies, Police Scotland borrowing counts against Scottish Government expenditure/borrowing limits. This is different from police forces in England and Wales, which are believed to be classified as local bodies.

The Cabinet Secretary asked her officials to continue to explore what is possible with Scottish Government Finance.

Estates Masterplan

The Chief Constable highlighted the importance of investing in the Police Scotland estate in a sustainable way with a long term approach. The Chief Constable estimates Police Scotland require additional capital funding of around £200 million over 10 years.

The Cabinet Secretary acknowledged that the current approach to estates is not efficient and supports the long term approach to capital investment. DM noted there may be room for negotiation in terms of capital flexibility between years and Police Scotland’s proposals to manage capital receipts to fund costs.

2025/26 budget proposal

The Cabinet Secretary provided an update on timings in relation to the Scottish Government budget, noting that awaiting the outcome of the UK Government budget. The Cabinet Secretary was supportive of the Chief Constable’s request for a meeting between Police Scotland, the SPA, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government and Ms Constance ahead of the Scottish budget.

Police officer numbers

The Chief Constable stated that with approximately 200 new recruits starting next week, officer numbers are expected to increase to over 16,600. This will continue to fluctuate with the cycle of recruitment and retirement.

The Cabinet Secretary welcomed the figures, noting that this will not correspond to the number of officers in the official statistics released next week as they refer to a different time period. The Chief Constable confirmed the figures next week will be the officer numbers as of 30 September and will make this clear in communications.

Police officer pay 

The Cabinet Secretary and Chief Constable discussed the next steps following the police officer staff associations registering a failure to agree in response to the Official Side pay offer. The first stage is conciliation facilitated by the Chair of the Police Negotiating Board for Scotland (PNBS). If there is no agreement at this stage will move to conciliation and arbitration via ACAS.

The Chief Constable then asked for the Cabinet Secretary’s support to progress the Assistant Chief Constable (ACC) pay claim. The Chief Constable highlighted the independent assessment of ACC Pay by Korn Ferry which found ACC posts in Scotland were paid less than comparable roles England and Wales. The Chief Constable also noted that there are police staff who are paid more than ACCs.

The Cabinet Secretary will seriously consider the ACC claim but noted the desire to progress the wider officer and staff pay claims as the priority.

Emma Caldwell public inquiry

The Chief Constable provided an update on progress identifying an external police force to carry out a new criminal investigation into the original investigations following the murder of Emma Caldwell. Conversations were ongoing and there had been a wider call for assistance via NPCC. The Cabinet Secretary was grateful for the update.

Police Scotland three-year business plan

DCC Connors gave a comprehensive update on delivery of the three-year plan with a focus on workforce modernisation, use of technology and criminal justice reform. On the last of these, the dependency on plans for the rollout of Summary Case Management (SCM) was highlighted - where this has been implemented officers are starting to see a reduction of time spent in court. 

The Cabinet Secretary welcomed the update and asked what changes will see over the first year of the plan. DCC Connors responded that over the next year Police Scotland will strengthen frontline focus and improve visibility of officers by moving officers from middle office to the frontline. The cyber and fraud centre will go live and Police Scotland will join the UK's national reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime. DCC Connors emphasised that a key element of change will be consistency across all divisions in service delivery with a focus on a trauma informed approach.

In relation to technology, the Cabinet Secretary asked for the Chief Constable’s views on Live Facial Recognition (LFR), following increased public and political interest in this matter.

The Chief Constable noted that she had shared with the SPA and Scottish Biometrics Commissioner that she would start a conversation around LFR and the use of technology more broadly. The Chief Constable highlighted the benefits of technology in the speed and ability to process significant amounts of data while emphasising there would always be a human element in any decision making process.

DM noted there will be high interest in what safeguards are in place and the readiness of any new technology for deployment. While acknowledging LFR is an operational matter, the Cabinet Secretary noted that she has written to the SPA Chair to seek further detail on the SPA’s approach to scrutinising Police Scotland’s plans for this technology.

Commonwealth Games 2026

DCC Connors provided an update on Police Scotland involvement in preparation for the Commonwealth Games. Conversations are ongoing about what is in scope, providing clarity on roles and ensuring there is accountability. DCC Connors will provide a written update to the Cabinet Secretary.